Newport- Dr. Mary Williams Keel passed peacefully into the arms of her Lord and Savior on the evening of September 30, surrounded by her loving family.

She spent 20 years working in the classroom of public school system, was loved by her students and co-workers from the Triangle to the Coast. She moved to the Coast in 1999 when she was married to Alan. She was chosen as Principal of the Year while serving as principal at Bridges Alternative School in Morehead City. She worked with NCDPI Prior to Bridges as an Instructional Lead, and returned to the NCDPI in the Virtual Public School where she served for the past 3 years as Director of English and Special Ed. She also taught as an Adjunct Professor for ECU teaching Special Ed Classes for the past 8 years.

She was a neighborhood favorite for kids of all ages and her home was known as "Camp Keel".  Every kid knew they would have a welcoming and fun place to spend their time in the back yard on trampolines, kayaks, whiffle ball, and camping adventures that always ended up on the living room floor.

More than anything, Mary loved her Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ and desired nothing more than for all to know Him as well. She was a wonderful wife, mother, daughter and friend and they were her priority as well. Spending almost every weekend with her sons' travelling baseball teams, they excelled under her love and support.

Mary was fun-loving and had a great sense of humor. In addition to just being with her family, some of her favorite things to do were running, walking, hiking, camping, kayaking, fishing, and playing ball with her boys. She helped countless junior high and high school students by tutoring them, editing essays, resumes, college applications, and scholarship applications.

Surviving Mary are her husband Alan, her sons Brandon, John and Aaron, her parents Talmage and Dolores Williams of Cary; her sister Debbie McDuffie and husband, Rick, of Benson, NC; her brother Mark Williams and wife, Kym of Beaufort, SC; beloved nieces and nephews, and great nieces and nephews.

Her family is grateful for all the love, prayers, and support they have received on her behalf during these past few years.

A memorial service will be held Sunday, October 10,2021 at 5:00 PM at Carolina Gardens on Hwy 24.  The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the Carolina Gardens.

In lieu of flowers, memorials made be made in her memory to unclineberger.org